State News in Brief

Utah lawmakers unveil air quality proposals

SALT LAKE CITY - A bipartisan group of Utah lawmakers has unveiled more than dozen proposals to tackle the state's pollution problems this year.

About 20 legislators held a news conference Wednesday afternoon while standing in the frigid smog outside Utah's Capitol.

"None of us want our air to look like it does today," said Rep. Patrice Arent, a Salt Lake City Democrat and co-chair of the Clean Air Caucus. "We don't want our cities to be listed among those that have the worst air in the nation."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ranked the Salt Lake region Wednesday as having some of the nation's worst air.

A day earlier, the state's air quality monitor issued a health alert for toxic air in northern Utah for the 23rd time this winter. That was more than the state saw last winter, which had been the worst in a decade.

The pollution problem is exacerbated in the winter and summer as high-pressure weather systems trap polluted air in northern Utah's bowl-shaped valleys.

Arent and other members of the Clean Air Caucus said they're concerned about the damage poor air quality causes to the health of Utah residents and the state's economy.

The proposals look to increase the use of cleaner burning vehicles and public transit systems and decrease practices such as wood burning.

Protesting student pays U tuition in dollar bills

SALT LAKE CITY - A University of Utah student says he paid his tuition bill with 2,000 one-dollar bills as a silent protest against the rising cost of college.

Luq Mughal brought a metal case full of greenbacks to the school Tuesday, the deadline for payment. He says he collected the cash from several banks.

Mughal told The Salt Lake Tribune he spends weekends working to pay for his electrical engineering degree.

The 21-year-old says he gets a discount because his father is a faculty member and acknowledges his situation is far from the worst on campus.

Undergraduate in-state tuition rates have more than doubled over the past 10 years. Trustees set a 5 percent tuition hike this year, saying they needed to fund a cost-of-living raise for employees as state funding declines.

Ex-Utah Rep. to lead search for GOP convention

SALT LAKE CITY - Former Utah congresswoman Enid Mickelsen will head the Republican National Committee's effort to find a site to host the party's 2016 Convention. RNC Chairman Reince Priebus made the announcement Tuesday.

Mickelsen, who is Utah's National Committeewoman to the RNC, served in Congress from 1995 to 1996.

She also served as deputy chief of staff for former Gov. Norman Bangerter, a Republican, and as chairman of the Utah Republican Party.

Utah GOP leaders were planning to pitch Salt Lake City as a site to host the convention, but later decided to abandon that effort.

Las Vegas, Denver, Charlotte and Phoenix have all been considering or actively bidding to host the convention.

Woman wins Roy council seat with 2 lucky draws

ROY - The newest City Council member in Roy can thank the luck of the draw for her new seat.

The Standard-Examiner reports Karlene Yeoman was chosen Tuesday after two rounds of casting lots.

A record 23 people applied to fill a seat left vacant by newly elected mayor Willard Cragun. The city held interviews on Tuesday before council members cast a vote at their meeting.

Yeoman tied for second place with another candidate and won a tie-breaker draw.

She then tied with the first-place winner and won another draw to win the seat.

Truck carrying cheese byproduct whey rolls over

LOGAN - Authorities say a semitrailer filled with the cheese byproduct whey toppled when the driver took a turn too fast.

Cache County deputies say the crash happened a little before 11 a.m. Tuesday. The driver and the passenger weren't wearing seatbelts and were taken to the hospital with injuries that don't appear to be life-threatening.

Officials say the truck from Dairy Way Transportation was carrying 5,000 gallons of the substance when the trailer tipped and took the cab with it. Deputies say the cab landed on its roof at 2400 West and Airport Road.

The driver and his trainer were able to get out of the cab.

The driver was cited for going too fast.

Crews with the Bear River Health Department were called to help with a hazardous material cleanup.

- The Associated Press

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State News in Brief

A bipartisan group of Utah lawmakers has unveiled more than dozen proposals to tackle the state's pollution problems this year.